1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to material movers, and, more particularly, to material movers equipped with augers.
2. Description of the Related Art
Material movers, such as snow blowers, are known that direct material from ends of the material mover toward a blower or other similar element, typically located near the center of the material mover, that can direct the material to a desired location. The material movers can have a fixed width, i.e., distance between the ends of the material mover from which material is moved, or have an adjustable width. An advantage of an adjustable width material mover is being able to increase the width of the material mover to increase the amount of material that can be moved but also being able to decrease the width of the material mover when a larger width is either unnecessary or would interfere with desirable operation.
When the material mover incorporates an auger system to direct material toward the center from the ends, it is difficult to extend and retract the auger flight due to its helical shape and rigidity that is needed to effectively direct material toward the center of the material mover. Known devices with extendable augers are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,910,946 (“Underwood”) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,356,910 (“Togstad”). One shortcoming of these extendable augers is that their construction is relatively complex, which provides multiple possible failure points during operation. Togstad, for example, discloses an extendable auger with two auger tubes that are telescopic relative to each other and each have a flight. The flight of one auger tube is hollow and the flight of the other auger tube is solid, with the configurations of the flights being such that the solid flight will thread into the hollow flight as the solid flight rotates relative to the hollow flight, allowing extension and retraction of the auger. This construction requires a mechanism that allows the hollow flight and solid flight to rotate independently of one another so that the solid flight can be threaded into the hollow flight, which adds complexity to the system.
What is needed in the art is an expandable material mover that is less complex than known devices.